Spar Jig and Table

Since we didn't build the canard ourselves, we did not have that nice table that the plans called out to build, so we had to get that out of the way before building the wing spar. As far as I'm concerned, the table is far nicer than it really NEEDS to be, but it sure looks good.

First, I'd like to personally thank Mr. Fox, a neighbor of our shop. He owns a first-rate woodshop and helped us precisely cut the strips of wood for our table and jig.

Next, here is the table being built. We figured that we needed some kind of protection from the epoxy if we were going to use it again for the wing jig, so we applied a sealant. Also, notice this nifty little trick I learned from building a model railroad layout table. A hole is drilled in the bottom of the table legs and a T-Nut is inserted. Then, a carriage bolt is inserted, allowing the table to easily be adjusted. Works great!

Then, we started on the jig itself. Here are the completed parts.

Finally, thanks to Martin Fryer (Flying Backward Blog), I'm also working on a ratchet device to hold the use gear in place. I got lucky and found the last 7/16" box wrench at Sears. I also got the canopy from Todd's and couldn't help to put it on for a few seconds and admire it. We'll get to that later.

NB and Plumbing

12/17/11 Whew! What a day! First, I removed the peel ply from the last layup that secured the NB in place.

Next, we plumbed the static and pitot tubes. The pitot tube was called to go in such a way that it would actually touch the top of my foot when I did a test sit, so we used a better way. The tips section of the old CP newsletters suggest attaching it to the left fuselage side, which is what we decided was best. It is held sown by 2 narrow strips of BID.

Then, we slurried on oversized chunks of urethane. These will later be carved into that beautiful nose, but right now it looks like crap.

 Finally, before we called it a day we were able to lay down 2 piles BID on the underside of the NB. This is just one side and the middle section aft of the SC will be glassed tomorrow.

Nose Bowl Installation

12/3/11 Whew, finally been able to get back to working on the project. So far I've had to layup 2 piles BID on my nose bowl because it was cut in half by the last builder. I then attached it to a foam support because there was not enough clearance for the tire. I finally attached the Nose Bowl, and added some more dry micro to my my practice wing. Nose Strut is complete and ready to be installed.

One of my good EAA pals, "the real George Scott", was kind enough to out his EAA tech counselor skills to work as he graciously donated some of his time to inspect the progress of the Long. He said good job and keep it up! A big thanks to George!

After acquiring a much better computer, I can upload pictures much faster to this blog. I will now try to feature as many pictures of my progress on this blog, however I will still feature all of the photos on Facebook. I take the pictures of my progress and upload them all from my phone.